


H is for Hesitation

by Psychodelikas



Series: The Alphabet of Dreams [9]
Category: Labyrinth (1986)
Genre: F/F, F/M, Jared is a little shit, The Author Regrets Everything, The Author Regrets Nothing, Vala not so much, We got more than just fun and games, Welcome to the world of magic!, Yeah I said it!, Zane is in Heaven, yet - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-28
Updated: 2017-11-28
Packaged: 2019-02-08 02:47:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,679
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12855102
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Psychodelikas/pseuds/Psychodelikas
Summary: Somewhere deep, deep down, I was overjoyed. It wasn’t like I was bored with my life or anything. I was way too young for that anyway. But to have something as miraculous as the things which were happening to me was more than I could have ever hoped for. And I owed it in part to my best friend in the whole wide world.I refused to acknowledge that the other part I owed to a certain, mismatched owner who loved to screw with me.And I can’t believe I’m hoping he really will do that sometime in the very near future!





	H is for Hesitation

“You still haven’t told me your theory yet,” I told her without looking at her.

“Huh?” Zane exclaimed from the passenger seat.

I smiled. “Your grand theory about why I wasn’t able to figure out the runes.”

“Oh. Well, it’s obvious, isn’t it?”

I glanced at her as I raised my shoulders.

“Those weren’t your everyday symbols to decipher. Seen as how the title said, **FOR YOUR MIND’S EYE** , the only way you could have ever understood anything was during the night, in your dreams. Which reminds me! You haven’t told me what you dreamt about that night.”

I pressed my lips into a line, holding the wheel tightly.

I felt Zane’s frown. “Vala, what did you dream about?”

“I…can’t tell you yet.”

“Okay. Why?”

“Because I’m not sure what it was I saw and there’s no point in speculating,” I told her truthfully.

I glanced at her. She had narrowed her eyes at me. “The way you said that makes me think you saw something you normally would deem impossible but accepted it. And we both know that in real life, you rarely do that.”

“May we please drop this until we get there?”

For a moment, I thought she’d fight me. “Fine.”

“Thank you.”

We didn’t feel the need to speak for the rest of the journey.

Precisely four days passed since Zane and I had last spoken. True to my word, we hadn’t mentioned Jared or the book or anything supernatural. Instead, we had focused on school and our projects which had been a small miracle. The need to discuss my highly unusual events was too great. And I simply _refused_ to use the word, strange.

I suspected that my kooky best friend had dedicated only ten percent of her energy to her project and the rest into her stories. Her beloved ‘Strange Collection,’ as she had named it. I couldn’t blame her. She had been writing for years but she had never sent anything to be published which I thought was stupid. Her Heirs were rather amazing and it wasn’t like it was rocket science to change a few names in order to avoid any copyright complications. But it was her passion.

And my curse, as it turned out. The supernatural creatures which Zanthe loved to write about had all been present in my dream and the only way I knew that was because in the dream, I just knew who was what (despite the fact that all of them appeared to be human). Well, almost all of them had been present but enough to make me question a lot of things, one of which being the possibility that maybe Zane had some kind of superpower which either made her stories come true, or gave her knowledge she really shouldn’t be having.

_She doesn’t need to know that I am dying to find out what she wrote recently because last time she sent me her progress on her latest story was one month ago but who’s counting?!_

Somewhere deep, deep down, I was overjoyed. It wasn’t like I was bored with my life or anything. I was way too young for that anyway. But to have something as miraculous as the things which were happening to me was more than I could have ever hoped for. And I owed it in part to my best friend in the whole wide world.

I refused to acknowledge that the other part I owed to a certain, mismatched owner who loved to screw with me. _And I can’t believe I’m hoping he really_ will _do that sometime in the very near future!_

I pushed that silly thought out of my head as I pulled in front of the castle. I glanced at Zane and I half smiled. She couldn’t take her eyes off the stone structure. I took the keys out then she and I exited the car. I locked my trusty vehicle then took my best friend’s hand in mine. She quickly smiled at me then we bravely headed for the main stairs.

Naturally, the double doors opened the moment our feet touched the first step. Zane gasped softly then bit her lip so that she wouldn’t giggle. I couldn’t help myself but smile. _She can be such a silly child sometimes._

When I saw what was inside the castle that time, my smile vanished at the same time as the doors closed behind us.

The main hall was a heck of a lot bigger and overflowing with guests. Men, women and children of all shapes, sizes and colors were coming and going, some up the stairs, some down. Some to the left, some to the right.

What set all of them apart from the rest were their abilities to change into animals then back into humans, to make flowers, fire or water appear out of thin air, to grow wings, _to use magic_ or to even change their appearance into that of entirely different people and scare their friends. And they were speaking in every language imaginable.

To say that I was stunned and staring like a crazy person at the impossible sight before me was an understatement. To say that I was a hair strand away from yelling hysterically was more accurate.

I looked to my right. Zane was one hundred percent in her element. She was looking at everyone with her mouth fixed into a large and toothy smile, her eyes sparkling so much, I could have sworn there were two jewels there.

I was just about to tell her something when the cutest little girls I had ever seen _flew_ to us. Their wings were a mixture of white and black feathers, the exact same mixture as my ruby and gold hair. They appeared to be no older than ten, maybe eleven. They both had walnut hair and big, chocolate brown eyes. “Hello,” the tallest of them greeted us in a voice incredibly sweet.

“Hi,” Zanthe said silly, waving at them.

“Do you wanna play with us?” the other one asked, her voice just as sweet.

“Uh-huh,” the mesmerized nincompoop said with a nod of her head.

The two girls giggled then each took Zane by the arm and guided her to the terrace.

“Zane!” I called out after her, my hands outstretched after her.

“Ah! Welcome back, Miss Straits!”

I looked towards the voice’s source then lowered my sights. “Hi, Timotheus.”

The dwarf smiled. “You may call me Timo, milady.”

I cringed. “Just Vala,” I told him. “I don’t really care much about that other thing.”

“Oh, I see. Very well! Vala, it is.”

“Thank you. Now can you please tell me where Jared is?”

Timo scoffed. “That precious thing can’t be bothered to notify someone when he’s leaving. Or when he’ll be back.”

“Great,” I mocked. “I mean, _of course_ he’s not around when I’m about to lose my mind!”

“Yes, he’s always around for boring stuff but something interesting actually arrives, he’s nowhere to be found,” the dwarf agreed.

I couldn’t help myself but laugh at his little remark. I really didn’t like looking down at the only person helping me so I awkwardly got down to my knees. “Timo, may I ask you something which may seem…a bit stupid?”

The poor man was stunned beyond words by my simple gesture, he could only stare at me like a child. He quickly composed himself and straightened his back. “There is nothing you could ever ask me that I will consider stupid, Vala,” he said solemnly.

I giggled. “How come there are so many people around here all of a sudden?”

“Well, except maybe that,” Timotheus corrected himself. I shot him an annoyed but amused look. Just then, two rather large men passed us, one of them bumping into the dwarf so hard, he fell into my arms. “Watch where you’re going!” he shouted after them angry. They paid him no mind. “Werewolves! No manners whatsoever.”

I felt like my head would explode.

“Come on,” he said grumpy. “Let’s go somewhere we can have a civilized conversation.”

Timotheus led me into the study and I wondered at the suits of armor once more. The feeling that they were somehow the real deal still wouldn’t leave me.

“So!” Timo said cheery after we were both safely hidden from the commotion. My eyes wandered over to the bookcase and I saw the rune book back in its place.

“We have a lot to talk about.” He went to the large desk and jumped on the chair. I bit back my smile as I sat down in front of him. “The reason why you can suddenly see every one of our guests is simple. For one thing, the castle thinks you’re ready to see them. For another, your friend being here has allowed for you to see them as well.”

“What?” I exclaimed confused.

“I can’t quite put my finger on it yet but there is something about Miss Reinhart’s aura which fits here perfectly.” He shrugged. “That same aura extended itself to you and here we are.”

_I am so telling Zane every word of that just so I can see how insanity settles itself inside her pretty blonde head!_

I bit my tongue hard so that I wouldn’t smile. “Can you please explain it to me like I’m a five year old?”

Timo laughed. “Simply put, there’s a powerful spell guarding this place. Supernaturals can come and go as they please. Humans are a lot more complicated. In addition to being sneaky, they’re also evil. But not all of them are like that. The twenty-five rule keeps everyone out and lets only a few in. The rarest cases are like your friend. She’s cut from a very different cloth and the castle knows it. You’re not like anyone as well, and the castle knows that too. 

Magic. Everything came down to magic. And given what I had just seen, I found the dwarf’s explanation actually reasonable!

“What are those people?” I heard myself ask after a moment of silence.

“Oh, they’re plenty of things,” Timotheus said happy. “They’re shape shifters and spellbinders. There are also energivores and werewolves who as you saw, have _no_ manners. I don’t care how big they are, I said it. We have fairies and elves and dwarves. And there are _démon des anges_ and dhampires and elementals. Oh! And of course, vampires but they love the cliché humans gave them and come out only at night when they stay here. They _love_ going into town and playing with humans. Did you know that vampires have quite the dark fan base? The things these humans come up with are simply staggering.”

“Actually, yeah,” I laughed. “I did know that. But you’re joking, right?”

“About what?”

“About all of the, the supernatural creatures you’ve just mentioned. I mean, they _can’t_ all be real, right?”

Timo regarded me with a blank look.

My heart beat faster in my chest as I regarded the man before me with huge, scared eyes. “But they’re just characters in Zane’s stories!” I blurted out before I could think. “How on Earth could they _all_ be real?”

My words caught Timo’s interest. “Are they?” he said intrigued. “Well, then I take back what I said earlier. Your friend _belongs_ here.”

_Yep. Telling her that too._

I laid back in my chair, feeling oddly defeated. It was just too much. And I observed that it was too much _information._ I felt like everything Timo had just told me was perfectly real, that wasn’t the problem. The volume however was another issue.

“Well, I’ll just leave you to your thoughts then,” the dwarf said after I didn’t speak for a full two minutes. He jumped off the chair then left me alone in the study.

I had no idea for how long I remained in my seat but the only thing I could think about was Zane’s collection of stories. Some of those were as long as four hundred pages while the shortest was eighty-something. All of them revolved around the supernatural world in one way or another but her heart and soul were eight young women who held in their hands the fate of all supernatural creatures.

I finally rose to my feet and felt how my blood rushed back into my legs. I walked over to the tall window, arms crossed over my chest. I felt myself smile slowly at the rather sunny sight which greeted me.

My silly Zanthe was still in those two girls’ company but they had brought a few friends. Two boys could summon fire and ice at will and they weren’t too shy about showing their new human friend what they could do. A small girl with hair as blonde as Zane’s shyly showed her how she could create a little sphere of what I thought was green magic. Then I noticed how the sphere sizzled and cracked. The child was an energivore!

And my crazy ass, nincompoop of a best friend had small dimples in her cheeks, she was smiling that hard.

I chuckled as I shook my head. _I have no idea how the hell I’m gonna take her back home now that she’s…well, home!_

*****

***     ***

*****

To my complete astonishment, I _did_ manage to rip her from the amazing world she had discovered.

_…a few hours later!_

True to her insane nature, Zane had more or less emotionally manipulated me into staying at the castle until dinner time. She had threatened that if I took her away, she would cry all the way back. Sadly for me, she had had that insane spark in her eyes she always did whenever she was about to make good on her threats.

But I had to admit. It had been the best day of my life!

Supernaturals were just as amazing in the flesh as Zane had made them out to be on paper. They were _identical_ to her characters with only minor exceptions.

The highlight of my day had been Zane actually meeting her characters. They went by the names Wilhelm Farrow-Piercy, quirky and smart-mouthed energivore; Oliver “Merlin” Blake, Irish spellbinder; Christopher Glück, flirtatious and Australian human shape shifter; and Varius Seneca, ancient vampire with a tendency to call men, women and children alike, ‘little one.’ Her characters had a different name but the personalities were almost to a tee. I had never been so happy to see Zanthe questioning her already precarious sanity.

By the time I finally arrived home after dropping Zane off at hers, it was close to eleven in the evening. I anxiously awaited Kyra’s barking but no German Shepard greeted me. I frowned.

“I’m home,” I called as I prepared to enter.

“In here, honey!” Mom answered, waving at me from her spot in the chair next to the bookcase.

I nodded at her then went inside. I took my shoes off and rested my bag next to the fridge. I opened my mouth to explain why I was returning so late then my words died in my mouth.

Sitting in Mom’s usual armchair was none other than Jared Freakin’ Korrick, my Kyra resting her head on his knees. _Traitor._

The bastard smiled at me. “Good evening, Valaria,” he greeted me casually as he rubbed Kyra’s head.

I just waved at him. “Sorry I’m so late,” I told Mom. “Zane and I lost track of time.”

“Did you eat?”

“Yep.”

“Then you’re forgiven,” Dad said, making me jump in my spot. He smiled at me.

_Of course he just_ had _to sit down in the one place I don’t normally see when I come in here…_

My wonderful father had elected to sit down in the armchair placed between the window and door frame which was essentially like hiding in plain sight.

“We have some good news for you, Valaria,” Mom announced. “Mr. Korrick has brought us quite the interesting proposal.”

“I’m sure he has,” I muttered.

“What was that?”

“What did he bring?”

“He wants to expand his business,” Dad took over. “And he wants _you_ to help him with the legal oversight.”

It was like someone had just stolen the ground from underneath my feet.

Jared’s smile widened. “I am aware this would be the first big scale project you’ve ever worked on,” he said charmingly. “But from what your parents have told me today, you’re the perfect woman for the job.”

_If my parents weren’t in the room, I’d tell ya_ exactly _what I’m perfect for!_

I tried to smile. “Don’t believe a word they’ve told you. They’re my parents. Their judgment can’t be trusted by default.”

If Mom and Dad shot me rather reproachful looks, Jared laughed at my remark. “Be that as it may,” he said as he carefully rose to his feet, “I expect you at work bright and early. Nine o’clock sharp.”

“What?” I exclaimed like a fool as my parents mimicked his confused expression. “You, you, you want me to start tomorrow?”

The bastard smirked. “Tomorrow is Sunday, is it not?”

“Yes?”

“Then unless you have some classes to catch up, I don’t see what the problem is.”

I swallowed my incredibly nasty remark.

Jared rubbed Kyra’s head once more then planted a quick kiss goodbye on her forehead. He kissed Mom’s hand and shook Dad’s. I quickly got out of the way so that he could head for the door. Of course, the son of a bitch just _had_ to kiss my hand as well. But unlike with Mom, he held it with both of his hands and kept his lips on my skin just a few seconds longer, his ruby and gold eyes never once leaving my face. My heart skipped a beat and I was very happy I had worn a long sleeved blouse so that he couldn’t see my goose bumps.

“Until tomorrow,” he wished me.

“Good night, Mr. Korrick,” I told him.

And with one final smirk, he was gone.

“Thanks for getting me a job without telling me, Mom,” I mocked.

“I’ll have none of that tone, young lady,” she replied sternly. “You know perfectly well that I wouldn’t do something like this for just anyone. Jared Korrick happens to be a very respectable businessman whom both your father and I trust. Of course we would put you ahead of us on any project he would present to us.”

_Cue in shame and remorse…_

“Besides, it’s only part time.”

“What?”

“You’ll only be working in weekends and just for a few hours at that,” Mom explained. “Mr. Korrick is a reasonable man. He knows you still have your master to finish, hence the part time.”

_How generous of him…_

“Besides, if he gets any funny ideas of keeping you overtime,” Dad put in, “you can always tell him that you’ll do the extra hours if he’ll finish your paper and classes for you.”

“How about I actually graduate, Dad?”

We laughed but as soon as I found myself in the solitude of my room, my mind started thinking how Jared asking me to stay after hours would look like. None of those scenarios came even close to reality and all of them involved moaning and groaning.

I shook those stupid thoughts away as I prepared for my shower. Karma disagreed with me having even ten minutes of peace and my sick brain showed me even more possibilities after I would start working. _Note to self: never re-watch ‘Secretary’ ever again!_

Twenty minutes later, I was downloading that precise movie then another ten minutes after that, I was praying my mother wouldn’t barge in on me during the good stuff.

That night, my usual dream changed again, as was to be expected. Instead of waiting for my lover to come to my in the bedroom, I came to him in his study. He raised his head and smiled. “I thought you’d be sleeping by now,” he said.

“I _am_ sleeping,” I told him amused, getting closer and closer to his desk.

He chuckled. “Indeed, you are.” He rested himself back in his chair. “How are you finding this form of communication?”

“Very confusing, to tell the truth.” I slowly sat myself down on his desk, crossing one leg over the other.

Jared’s mismatched eyes carefully followed their movement then looked up at me. “I’m sure it will be like that for a little while longer,” he said, his voice low. “But I assure you, it won’t remain that way forever.”

“I know,” I said softly. I slowly let myself slide down until I could rest my elbow on the wooden surface and my head in my hand. “When do you suppose that will happen?”

Jared took a deep breath as his eyes inspected every inch of my body. I could see how he was fighting the urge to tear my silk nightgown off me in that very moment. He forced himself to focus. “When you’ll be ready,” he answered hoarsely.

I slowly rolled on my back, letting my head go down as well but keeping my eyes on his face. “But I’m ready now,” I told him softly.

His eyes got a bit darker, his raven hair absorbing all light. “Are you, now?”

He got up and placed a hand on my stomach. He brought his face closer to mine. “Are you really?” he whispered on my lips.

I gasped softly as his fingers steadily went further down my body. “Yes…” I whispered on his mouth.

Jared breathed heavily as he stared into my very soul. “Then show me.”

I woke up out of breath, wheezing and desperately seeking air. I coughed as I turned over to one side, shaking from head to toe. “What, cough! What, cough, cough! _What the actual fuck!”_ I managed to articulate high pitched and out of breath. Then a simple thought occurred. “For your mind’s eye…” I whispered high pitched then coughed again.

The sun was shining and the birds were singing happily. I looked at my phone. It was barely half past seven.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank so much for still being here! ^_^


End file.
